[Via Satellite 08-04-2014] Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL) CEO Matt Perkins is confident that applying Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) technology to satellite will continue to revolutionize satellite design over the next decade. Already a key practice at SSTL, Perkins told Via Satellite that as more companies adopt this approach it will continue to accelerate […]

[Via Satellite 07-29-2014] Rocket Lab revealed plans to build a carbon-composite dedicated small satellite launch vehicle named Electron. Currently under construction in New Zealand, the company anticipates launching payloads of up to 100-kg to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) for less than $5 million. Silicon Valley venture firm Khosla Ventures is the principal funder. The Electron […]

[Via Satellite 07-16-2014] Though more prominently known for its suborbital spaceflight business, Virgin Galactic has also been working on a dedicated small satellite launch system known as LauncherOne. Speaking to Via Satellite, George Whitesides, CEO of Virgin Galactic, said the company hopes to have liftoff using its air-launch system within the next two years. “We try not to […]

[Via Satellite 06-12-2014] In a move to capture the ever-growing small satellite market, Lockheed Martin resurrected the Athena rocket family to provide dedicated small satellite launches. Constructed by Lockheed Martin and Alliant Tech Systems (ATK), the Athena 1 and the Athena 2 are back on the market with at least one other iteration under development. […]

[Via Satellite 05-08-2014] Spaceflight Inc., a company dedicated to launching small satellites, has nearly filled all the slots for the maiden flight of its Sherpa hosted payload and in-space transportation system. Sherpa is a free-flying platform that uses an oversized Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) Secondary Payload Adapter (ESPA) ring exclusively for small satellites ranging […]

[Via Satellite 04-25-2014] In a move to capitalize on the ever-growing CubeSat market, Aerojet Rocketdyne has begun testing three different propulsion systems using 3-D printed designs. The decision to bolster the company’s smallsat project stemmed from a contract with NASA’s Flight Opportunities Program Office at Armstrong Flight Test Center in California. Under this contract, Aerojet […]

[Via Satellite 04-07-2014] NASA has granted Orbital Sciences a contract to launch the Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) multi-satellite mission on board the Pegasus XL rocket. Orbital’s Stargazer L 1011 aircraft will carry the CYGNSS payload. The mission is planned for October 2016 from the Cape Canaveral Air Force station in Florida. The CYGNSS […]

[Via Satellite 02-18-2014] Kratos Defense & Security Solutions announced the release of quantumCMD, a portable Command and Control (C2) system designed for small satellite missions. These small satellites, known as microsats, CubeSats and nanosats, are compact alternatives to the costly larger satellite missions. Traditional satellite missions can cost anywhere from $300 million to $1 billion, […]

[Via Satellite 01-14-2014] Tethers Unlimited (TUI) is testing a new propulsion method that stands to greatly improve access to, as well as the capability of CubeSats. The thruster, called Hydros, is the company’s newest product, and it has already received interest from a variety of markets. Last month the United States Air Force signed a […]

[Via Satellite 01-10-2014] Spaceflight Inc. and NanoRacks are preparing to deploy multiple CubeSats from the International Space Station (ISS). The CubeSats are currently en route to the ISS onboard Orbital Sciences’ Cygnus Orb 1 resupply mission, which launched on Jan. 9, 2014. The satellites were manifest via the NanoRacks space act agreement with NASA, and […]